Car-unloader



i G. BROWN.

CAR UNLOADER.

APPLICATION man MAY26, 1919.

Patented June 29, 1920.

5 SHEETS-SHEET l.

J G. BROWN.

CAR UNLOADER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 26, 1919.

Patented June 29, 1920.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

A MN.

. J 6. BROWN. 4 CAR UNLOADER. APPLICATION FILED MAY 26, I919.

Patented June 29, 1920.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

J G. BROWN.

CAR UNLOADER.

' AP'PLICATION FILED MAY 26, 1919. 29 v 5 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

to f3 J G. BROWN.

CAR UNLOADER.

APPLICATION FILED MAYZG, 1919.

1,345,121. Patented June 29; 1920.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 5.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

J GROVE BROWN, OF KINGSTON, NEW YORK.

CAR-UNLOADER.

App1ication filed May 26, 1919.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, J GROVE BnowN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Kingston, in the county of Ulster and State a bin which is supported at its ends on wheeled columns, the columns being spaced apart a sufficient distance to permit a truck or wagon to pass between them, under the bin, so that the contents of the bin may be discharged into the vehicle. Attached to the bin is a folding elevator, which, when in use, extends above the bin and also into a pit dug alongside the railway track to receive and deliver the material into the bin. I also provide a chute adapted to be set into an excavation between the cross-ties of the railway, to receive the material from the car, and a feeder at the lower end of the chute feeds the material in regulated quantities into the buckets of the elevator as they travel upwardly in the pit. By adjusting the feeding device to the speed of the ele-' vator, the unloading of the car and loading of the bin may go on rapidly and con tinuously,'so that the car is not long detained. The trucks or wagons may drive beneath the bin and receive their loads without delay and without interfering with the operation of the elevator.

In the accompanying drawing, illustrates my invention,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the unloading apparatus, the elevator being shown in operative position in full lines and in folded positions in dotted lines;

Fig. 2 is a section through the loading bin on the line 22 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 3 is a top plan viewof the bin, with the side and end doors in open'position;

Fig. 4 is a section on the line Jr-4t of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a plan View of the detachable reach for connecting the front and rear sup- V which porting columns for the bin when the bin is to be moved;

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 29,1920.

Serial No. 299,976.

Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the elevator;

F g. 7 is a rear elevation of the same;

- Fig. 8 is a detail view showingthe manner of supporting the slack portion of the bucket chain when the elevator is folded;

Fig. 9 is a section on the line 99 of Fig. 6;

Fig. 10 is a section through the discharge chute and feeder, taken on the line 10-10 of Fig. 11, and showing also a portion of the bucket chain arranged within the pit;

Fig. 11 is a view showing the discharge chute and feeder, in elevation, as viewed from leftto right in Fig. 1.0, and,

Fig. 12 is a side elevation of the elevator and part of the bin, showing the elevator folded, with certain of the drive chains removed.

Referring to Fig. 1 of the drawing, A indicates a storage bin which is supported at its ends by columns 1 and 2, which columns are carried by front and rear pairs of supporting wheels, 3 and 4, respectively. The columns 1 and 2 are spaced apart a sufficient distance to afford a driveway between them and the bin is supported on the 7 may be opened and closed by doors 8, the

latter being movable by means of rack rods 9, connected to the doors and operable by means of pinions 10, arranged upon vertical shafts 11, which shafts extend downwardly in the forward supporting column and are provided with hand wheels 12, whereby the shafts may be turned and the doors opened and closed. Doors 13 are hinged to the sides of the frame and movable from the horizontal, closedposition to the vertical position. Other doors 14: and 15 are secured to the bottom pieces 5 near the ends of the latter,and these doors also fold downwardly to closed position and are movable to the upright positions shown in Figs. 2 and 3.

When the d0ors 13 and the doors 14 and 15 are in their raised. positions, it will be evident that they form upward extensions of the bin. Hooks 16 are provided for connecting the end doors to the side doors when the doors are in raised position. When it is desired to fold the doors, the doors 14 and 15 are first let down and the doors 13 are then closed over the doors 14 and 15.

The elevator B is supported upon the bin and the frame of the elevator is composed of three sections. The central section f of the frame comprises parallel bars 17 of angle steel, arranged in inclined position at the rear of the bin and having their upper ends 17 bent over into horizontal position and suitably secured to the top of the bin frame. Braces I) connect the lower ends of the bars 17 with the column 2. The upper section 7 of the elevator frame comprises two parallel bars 18, (Figs. 7, 9 and 12) which are hinged a short distance from their centers to the bars 17 by hinge pins 19, which project from the bars 17 at or near their upper ends and engage ears 20 on the bars 18, as shown in Figs. 6 and 12. This hinged section of the elevator frame may be swung about its pivotal point from the folded position shown in full lines in Fig. 12 and in dotted lines in Fig. 1, to the upright position shown in full lines in the latter figure and in Figs. 6 and 7. The lower section f of the elevator frame comprises a pair of parallel bars 21, which are slidable upon the stationary bars 17 of the central section;

A shaft 22 is journaled in suitable bearings upon the lower end of the upper section f of the frame, and this shaft carries a driving pulley 23 which, when the elevator is in use, is connected by a belt 24 to a motor 25, carried by the rear support 2 of the bin. Upon the shaft 22 is arranged a sprocket wheel 26, (Fig. 7) and this sprocket wheel is connected by a chain 27 to a sprocket wheel 28 on a shaft 29,

journaled in the upper end. of the section f. The bucketchain 30 passes over a driving sprocket 31 on the shaft 29 and also around an idle sprocket wheel .32, the latter being journaled upon a shaft 33 at the lower end of the lower section 7. From this it will be seen that when the motor is in operation the bucket chain will be. driven thereby through the medium of the pulley 23 and drive chain 27. A winding drum 0 is provided on the central section f, and a chain 34 on this drum is adapted 'to be connected to the lower end of the upper section, as shown in dotted lines in 12, for the purpose of raising or lowering said section; or to be connected, when the elevator is folded, to a portion of the bucket chain, for supporting the latter, as shown 7 in full lines in Figs. 8 and 12. The winding 1 drum 0 may be turned by a crank 35, which is secured to the shaft 36, the latter being connected by gears 37 and 38 to the drum 0,

upon the. drum,the upper section will be caused to rock about the pivots 19 and come into alinement with the fixed section f, andin this position it will be held by the chain. To fold the. upper section it is only necessary to unwind the chain from the drum and the weight of the upper portion of the upper section will cause said latter section to assume the horizontal position shown in Figs. 1 and 12. When the upper section has been folded, the chain maybe released therefrom and connected to a slack portion of the bucket chain to'support the latter, as hereinafter explained.

The central section of the frame is pro vided with another winding drum (Z, 7) and this is operated by a handle 39, geared to said drum by gears 4041. A

cable 42 on the drum has its ends connected to the upper and lower ends of the section f and it will be evident that by operating the crank 39 the cable will cause the sliding section to move in one direction or the other according to the way the crank is turned. When the section f israised to its upper position, the lower end of the elevator will be well clear of the ground; but said section may be lowered so that its lower end will extend downward below the surface of the ground into a pit e. WVhen the lower section is raised, it will be evident that a considerable slack will occur in the bucket chain and it is necessary to provide means for supporting this slack portion when the elevator is folded with hooks 43 for that purpose. Then. upon turning'the crank 35 the slack portion ofthe bucket chain may be raised and sup ported in loop-form, as shown in Fig. 12 and in dotted lines in Fig. 1. 7

When the bin and elevator are to be moved, a detachable reach 7", illustrated in. Fig. 5, is connected between the front and rear supports for the bin, as indicated indottedjlinesin Fig. 1, so that the pull on the rear column is exerted through the reach and not through the bin. A shaft 44 is shown connected to the front axle and the machine may be moved from place to place by horses or by connecting the same to' a the body of the car being represented at 4:5, and one of the car axles at 16. Below the car is shown a delivery chute Gr for receiving the stone or other material from the car and delivering it to the bucket chain of the elevator in the pit c. This chute, as shown in Fig. 11, is of such width that its sides 47 fitwithin the space between two of the cross ties t of the railway and it has a vertical side as which is secured to the bar 49, adapted to rest upon the cross ties. The bottom, 50, of the chute is inclined from the surface of the roadbed, between the rails, toward the pit 6, so that when the car is spotted over the chute and dumped, the material will tend to flow through the chute into the pit. At the lower end of the chute is arranged a gate 51 which may be opened and closed by means of a screwthreaded rod. 52, and immediately below the gate is a feed. roller 53 having radial vanes, and inclined downwardly from the roller is an extension 50 of the bottom of the chute, for delivering the material on to the buckets 54E of the elevator. The power for operating the feed roller 53 is supplied by the motor 25. The shaft 22 (Figs. 6 and 7) which is driven by the motor, has a sprocket wheel 55 which is connected by chain 56 to a sprocket wheel 57 on a shaft 58, which is-journaled on the fixed section 7" of the elevator frame. The shaft 58 is provided with a sprocket wheel 59, and a chain 60, applied to this sprocket wheel, engages a sprocket wheel 61 (Figs. 10 and 11) on the shaft 62 which carries the feed roller.

When the unloader' is ready for transportation from place to place, the covers of the bin are closed and the elevator is folded, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 1, and the reach bar is connected between the columns which support the bin. When brought to the place where material, such as broken or crushed stone, is to be unloaded from the cars, the elevator is unfolded and its lower end extended into the pit, as shown in Fig. 1, and the chain is connected to the sprocket on the feeder. The covers of the bin are then raised, thus forming an upward extension to the bin and increasing its capacity. The car to be unloaded is spotted over the chute G and the material is dumped or shoveled into said chute and passes down through the feeder. The gate above the feed roller is opened to allow the material to pass through to the feed roller as fast as the buckets on the elevator chain can carry off the material. This feeder, by removing the material at the bottom of the chute and throwing it into the buckets, prevents clogging of the chute, which would otherwise be very apt to occur with such material as crushed stone. The material carried upward by the elevator buckets falls into the bin and the operation is continuous. The bin has storage capacity enough to fill a large motor truck. The trucks'drive under the bin, between its supporting columns, and by opening the gates in the bottom of the bin, the trucks may be quickly loaded. In this way, the loading of the trucks does not interfere with the continuous operation ofv unloading the car. For road building, the invention is found very serviceable, because it may be set up in position beside the railroad track at any point where it is convenient to deliver the road material. If the pit is not already provided at the point where the road material is to be delivered from the cars, it is merely necessary to dig a pit and make a suitable excavation between the adjacent ties into which the chute G may be readily inserted, and when the chute is in position and the feed roller geared to the motor, the unloading operation may commence.

WVhat I claim is:

1. In a portable car unloading apparatus, a bin having supporting columns spaced apart to afford a driveway there-between, wheels supporting said columns, and a folding elevator secured to said bin.

I 2. In a portable car unloading apparatus, a bin having supporting columns spaced apart to afford a driveway there-between, wheels supporting said columns, a detachable reach for connecting the lower ends of said columns together, anda folding elevator secured to said bin.

3. In a portable car unloading apparatus,

a bin having a hopper bottom with a gatecontrolled discharge opening and having upwardly opening doors hinged to its sides hinged to the upper part of the central sec- 1 tion and adapted to fold over the bin, and a lower section in sliding engagement with the central section and adapted to extend below the wheels, a bucket chain on said frame, and means for operating said chain.

5. In a portable car-unloading apparatus, a bin having supporting columns spaced apart to afford a driveway there-between and wheels supporting said columns, an elevator comprising a frame having a central section secured to the bin, an upper section hinged to the upper part of the central section and adapted to fold over the bin, and a lower section in sliding engagement with the central section and adapted to extend below the wheels, a bucket chain on said frame,

means for operating said chain, and windlasses onwthe central section for raising and lowering the upper-and lower sections.

6. In a portable car unloading-apparatus, a bin having wheeled supporting-columns spaced apart toprovide a driveway therebetween, an elevator secured to the bin and comprising a bucketchain, a chute for receiving the material to be unloaded from the car and-deliveringit to the bucket chain, a feeder at the outlet of said chute, and means for operating saidifeeder and bucket chain.

7. In a portable car unloading apparatus, a'bin having wheeledsupporting columns spaced apart to provide a driveway therebetween, an elevator. secured to the bin and comprising a bucket Chill 11 211 chute adapted to fit between adjacent ties of a railway and having means at one end adapted to rest on the cross-ties, a feeder at the lower end of the chute, and means for operating said bucket chain and feeder.

In testimony whereof I afiixmy si nature.

7 J GROVE BR WN. 

